


Satellites in the Night Sky

by Azazel (Laurincia)



Category: Banana Bus Squad, Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Wishes, Angst, I don't know what else to call this AU, Implied/Referenced Suicide, M/M, Moderate burn, More tags to be added later when I know what else to tag, because slow burn is too slow, consistently inconsistent updates
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-10
Updated: 2017-08-19
Packaged: 2018-11-30 03:01:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 10,911
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11454606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laurincia/pseuds/Azazel
Summary: When someone Wishes upon a star, they actually Wish on a Satellite that records and catalogs it until an Agent is assigned to the case. In this instance, John was assigned to Smitty's Wish.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> So the first chapter is going to be short AF because it's kind of like a prologue thing, I'll try to get the second chapter up relatively quickly.
> 
> If you want to give some ideas, my tumblr is airelenna

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the first chapter is going to be short AF because it's kind of like a prologue thing, I'll try to get the second chapter up relatively quickly.
> 
> If you want to give some ideas, my tumblr is airelenna

John leaned back in his chair, lightly tossing the glass tablet back and forth in his hands. On the tablet, was his latest Wish. The one he has to fulfill. His Assignor had warned him that the Wish was one of the more ‘Unconventional’ ones, but it wasn’t like John wasn’t one of the more Unconventional Agents. He had failed to fulfill an Unconventional Wish before, and it had cost the Wisher greatly, and now John made a promise to himself to never fail a wish again. The Wish? Killing a young boy’s abusive parents. It cost him greatly when the kid was later killed by blunt force trauma when his head was slammed into the drywall by his father.

 

John remembered another Unconventional Wish, a kid nicknamed ‘Delirious’ had wished for the death of his middle school bullies. Then, John didn’t hesitate to pull the trigger three times.

 

* * *

 

When Smitty was fifteen, his parents had told him that shooting stars weren’t in fact stars or comets, but satellites that recorded Wishes and would assign an agent to grant them. He didn’t believe them, but it didn’t hurt to try. So he stared out his window every night for an hour for four years, and when he finally saw a shooting star, he made his one and only wish. 

 

* * *

 

John had been assigned to a myriad of Unconventional Wishes, how much worse could this one be? So John took a deep breath and unlocked the blank screen. Instantly, the Wish was displayed on the glass screen, from a twenty-year-old simply named ‘Smitty.’ He read further, and the Wish was written under his name. ‘I wish that I would die.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If ye haz questions, just ask in the comments ;3
> 
> But one thing I might explain is that I'm making space tech more advanced than Earth tech cause space and all, like holograms and teleporters, but it still takes time for Wishes to reach a satellite and can take more time for it to be assigned to an agent. In this case, it took a year for the Wish to reach the satellite, and to be assigned to John.
> 
> There will be some agents that live on the satellites, and some live on nearby stars that the satellite's orbit. John lives on a satellite.
> 
> The tablets will probably be like Subnautica tablets cause why not
> 
> I might explain more in depth about John's failed Wish in later chapters
> 
> I'll probably update this part as I think of more things to explain, if necessary
> 
> This is from a prompt I found on Facebook/Tumblr
> 
> If you need mental images of the boi's faces, Kryoz has some facecam playthroughs and a face reveal on his channel. For the milkbag, you can find his face in Mini's Tennesee vlog around 16:40, he's the one in the black shirt in the back of the car ^^


	2. "You going to be able to handle it?"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John struggles with his past failed Wish and his previous Wishes as he works up the nerve to complete the one he got assigned to

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I might reuse a lot of words like 'fulfill' and or whatever because those would be the words the agents would normally use, and I'll capitalize things of importance that have something to do with the whole system, like 'Satellite,' because it's a place of importance, it's where some Agents reside. (Hope it makes sense.)
> 
> I'm pulling a lot of shit out of my ass here so bear with me, it'll be a wild ride for us all
> 
> (I need something to call the whole chain of command or I'll go insane, plz give suggestions, I'll luv u 4evr ;3 )

Craig, his Assignor knocked on his open door and stepped into the room. “You going to be able to handle this one?” He asked.

John knew he was referencing his failed Wish and he nodded. He wasn’t going to fuck this one up again. Craig looked skeptical but didn’t say anything. “If there are any issues, just call.”

 

John hated one of the cardinal laws about being assigned a Wish. After he failed his, the newest law had been implemented and drilled into every Agent’s heads; _never_ leave a Wish unfulfilled. Unfortunately, that law applies to the Unconventional ones too. If only he had fulfilled the Wish, if only he had done _something_ to at least try to fulfill the Wish, then the damned law wouldn’t have come to fruition. But he couldn’t. Because he couldn’t kill a three-year-old's parents, and because of that, the boy had died, because John couldn’t do it. Well, things change.

  


John made his way to the equipment rooms on the lower levels of the Satellite he resided on and got everything he needed for the Wish. He didn’t take much, only a pistol, an extra magazine of ammunition, and a small packet of ricin.

  


John envied the Agents that get the simple Wishes, like basic companionship or keeping watch of someone, keeping them safe. He envied one of his friends, Bryce, who received the simple wish from a little boy named Ryan, who simply Wished for a friend. It was a good thing for John that the High Assignors were more lenient with the Unconventional Wishes, if the Agent could convince the Wisher to redact it, then the Agent wouldn’t have to go through with it. Sometimes Agents that are assigned simple Wishes have the choice to stay with the Wisher after the Wish is fulfilled, and if they settle down, their house can be used as a teleport spot. That’s what Bryce did, last John heard.

 

One thing he never understood where the concept of ages for the Agents. According to Craig, they age a year slower than the people on Earth, but their ages fluctuate to accommodate the Wish. For example, if a little kid, aged five Wishes for companionship, the assigned Agent’s age would be five, or with a year difference until the Wish is fulfilled. When they return to the Satellites, their ages revert back. It’s disorienting to have their ages changed accordingly. Luckily John was the nearly the same age as Smitty.

He had also heard from Craig that the High Assignors regret giving John such a Wish so early onto his job as Agent, but what’s done is done.

  


His first Wish was simple, a little boy named Luke wanted a dog, so John gave him a dog.

The second Wish was to make someone’s last days pass by painlessly. John didn’t know what to do then, he was still a relatively new Agent, so he injected them with cyanide. He would never forget the pained faces of their loved ones.

The third Wish was from a twenty-year-old woman from Africa, who simply Wished for food for her village during the winter. John was happy to supply the village with more than enough food.

His fourth Wish was the one he had failed, and the kid that called himself Byze paid the price for John not completing his Wish. After John had heard what Byze’s father did, John rushed back to the house and didn’t hesitate to shoot that shithole in the head. That’s when the High Assignors decided to make John an Unconventional Agent.

His fifth Wish was Delirious. The redaction law wasn’t in place yet, since it was the tenth Unconventional. It was placed shortly after John returned.

The sixth Wish was from a young adult named Nick. He wanted the man who raped his girlfriend to go through the same thing he put his girlfriend through. Unfortunately, Nick wouldn’t redact the Wish. John couldn't bear to do anything but resent himself for a week. Craig had to keep an eye on John to make sure he didn’t do anything rash.

Wish number seven just wanted money for his brother to go to college.

Number eight wanted to kill their sister’s kidnappers. They wouldn’t redact either.

Nine wanted protection from people who tried to kill him. Unfortunately, that also meant killing the killers.

Ten Wished to get rid of their demons that haunted them. Their demons were their siblings.

Eleven was a politician who wanted to get rid of a foreign ambassador. They refused to redact, said it was crucial for the development of the states.

Number twelve has the pleasure of going to Smitty, the boy who wants to die. John doesn’t know if Smitty would redact it, but hopefully, he does. He doesn’t want to aid in someone’s suicide. He would say life is precious, but that would be hypocritical of someone who’s taken so many.

  


John picked out one of the Earth phones off the long shelves and scanned the barcode on the grip of his tablet, before moving over to the lockers and placed the tablet in it and pulled out a light blue hoodie and some holsters. He placed the ricin packet in the pocket of his jeans and put the holster on his torso, clipping the pistol in before putting on the hoodie. “You got assigned another Wish?” Another Agent, Tyler asked.

John nodded. “Unconventional.”

“You going to be able to handle it?” The other asked.

“Yeah, Craig asked the same thing.”

“You can’t blame him for asking, he’s the one that assigned you the Wish.”

“It’s also partially the High Assignor’s faults. They’re supposed to be overlooking everything and making sure no rookies get the Unconventional Wishes.”

“True. Well, good luck, bro,” Tyler held out his hand. John high-fived the other and Tyler pulled them into a bro hug. “I just hope they redact it.”

“I hope so too,” John muttered. _‘I just hope that I can get him to redact it.’_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really forgetful so I'm going to update the notes a lot to explain some things
> 
> There's more backstory in this chapter so yeah
> 
> If there are any plot holes, don't be afraid to point them out and I'll try to patch them, but hopefully I've explained well enough
> 
> I know that Bryce doesn't really approve of Brohm but I ship it.
> 
> The Agents use Earth phones cause it'll be weird for someone to be walking around with a magical space tablet
> 
> Luke is Cruutonz and Nick is sp00n (I might add H2O Detergent back in the story sometime)
> 
> Maybe I'll make a shitty map of the Satellites, or at least the one where John hails from, and I might post the draft of all the roles everyone has


	3. 'Not sweet enough'

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John meets Smitty in probably one of the most cliche ways possible

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title is cause coffee, not Smitty. Precious little milk bag will always be sweet ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° )
> 
> I've been binge watching Kryoz for the past few days to try to get a better grip on his personality. Still might be a bit out of character though
> 
> I would've updated yesterday but I was too tired to put in finishing details so ye
> 
> I'm thinking this story will take place somewhere like LA or somthin, mayeb

John went to the teleporter rooms and stepped into one of the stalls and placed the phone with the Wish pulled up for the scanner. A few seconds later, John found himself in Smitty’s neighborhood, in an Agent’s house. “Holy shit, John?” A familiar voice asked. John turned around and saw Bryce in a bear onesie. 

“Hey, Bryce!” John instantly brightened up at the sight of a familiar face. Bryce pulled John into a hug. “How have you been? It’s been awhile,” John said. 

“It’s been good! I’ve been staying with Ryan! He’s at work though,” Bryce grinned. 

John chuckled. “I ship it.”

“Well, the ship has sailed.” 

“Shit really?” 

Bryce nodded. “So, what brings you here?” 

“Another wish,” John sighed. 

“I find it horrible that they made you an Unconventional Agent because the High Assignors failed.”

John shrugged. “Craig had no control over it. They just filter the Wishes and assign them to the Assignors to give to the Agents.”

“Aren’t Brock and Evan High Assignors now?” Bryce asked. Even though Bryce quit the Agent life, he still kept in touch with everything.

John nodded. “They’ll keep shit going smoothly.”

“If anyone can keep them in line, it’s them.” 

John hummed in agreement.

“If you want, you can stay here with me and Ryan for the Wish,” Bryce offered.

_'_ Yeah, sure, thanks,” John smiled.   
  


* * *

 

 

John had spent the next couple of days learning all he could about Smitty, to figure out ways to try to get him to redact his Wish. He didn’t seem like the one to would be depressed in John’s eyes. He had a few but fiercely loyal friends that frequently played video games together. Bryce didn’t mention that he and Ryan were a part of Smitty’s friend group, but then again, John didn’t mention the details of the Wish to them, and at this point, he didn’t know if he could. Everyone that seemed to know Smitty has always seemed genuinely happy when they were around him. John didn’t know exactly when Smitty made the Wish, as it takes time for it to be recorded, cataloged, filtered, and assigned. Perhaps there was a real chance Smitty could redact the Wish. 

 

When Bryce came home from grocery shopping, he noticed John deeply contemplating the meaning of existence on the couch, staring a hole into his phone. “You alright there bud?” Bryce asked. 

John looked up. A few thoughts quickly ran through John’s mind.  _ ‘Should I tell him?’ _ He thought. 

“Is it about your Wish?” Bryce asked, walking into the kitchen to set down the few bags of groceries before going back and sitting next to John. 

_ ‘Fuck it.’ _ John thought. “You remember the kid? Byze?” John asked. 

“Yeah, how could I forget? That Wish ruined you,” Bryce said quietly.

“The Wish I got assigned to was from Smitty,” John forced the words out of his mouth. 

Bryce was quiet for a moment. “What did he Wish for?”

“He Wished that he would die,” John winced at Bryce’s shocked expression and regretted telling him. 

“W-do you know why?” Bryce asked.

John shook his head. “I tailed him for a few days to see if there was a reason. There was nothing obvious.” 

“It could’ve been from a few years ago,” Bryce started. “I remember him saying that he was depressed around that time.” 

“Hopefully it was,” John muttered. “Does he know that you were an Agent?”

“I brought it up once but he never really asked about it. He told me that his mother told him about Wishes and Agents when he was around fifteen.” 

“Our Satellite didn’t pass by Earth when he would’ve been fifteen,” John pointed out. 

Bryce hummed. “That might mean the Wish was recent. Fuck,” he muttered. “You want to meet him?”

“I’ll do it myself when I figure out a way to explain this shit.”

The other nodded. “The Unconventional Wishes seem to be the hardest ones to explain to the Wisher, like, “Hey, I came from space to grant you your Wish you made a while ago!””

John chuckled at Bryce’s humor. “I might keep the whole Agent and Wish thing a secret for a bit.”

“Alright, if that’s what you think is best.”

 

* * *

 

John had left his pistol and the packet of poison at Bryce's house and made his way to a small coffee shop that Smitty regulars in and ordered a simple vanilla latte and sat down at one of the tables near the windows after picking up the drink. He pulled out his phone and received a call from Bryce. John picked up the call and the other asking how it was going. 

“I literally just sat down,” he responded. 

“Well, Smitty will be there soon. I texted him and told him that you were a long time friend and that he should meet you.” Bryce’s tone seemed a little remorseful.

John hated himself for telling Bryce that it was Smitty’s Wish he had to fulfill, but it was better to tell him now than to wait. “Does he know what I look like?” 

“I told him to look for the dude that looks out of place.”

“Great! Thanks, Bryce!” John said sarcastically. 

“No problem,” Bryce responded, hanging up. 

John set his phone down on the table and took a sip of his latte.  _ ‘Not sweet enough.’ _

 

The door opened and the bells chimed. John looked up and saw Smitty in a camo jacket, gray shirt, black sweats and white vans, looking around, trying to be inconspicuous. One of the female baristas greeted Smitty and gave him a cup of coffee. Smitty spotted John afterward and walked towards him. “Hey, you’re John, right? Bryce’s friend?” Smitty asked John.

John nodded. “You must be Smitty then,” John reached out his hand and Smitty accepted the handshake, sitting down across from him

“Well, this is a cliche meetup. Don’t understand why Bryce couldn’t be here though,” Smitty muttered the last part. He took a sip from his coffee.

“Well he does have a job,” John pointed out.

“That is true. So what brings you to this part of town?” Smitty asked. 

“Just needed to get away from the country, the air was too fresh,” John joked. 

Smitty laughed. “Yes, I do love the smell of pollution and depression.” 

John laughed alongside Smitty. “The smell of incest sure is great.”

“You sure you don’t mean incense?”

“No, I’m pretty sure it’s incest,” John said in a know-it-all's voice.

Smitty made a ‘whatever’ face. “Alright, whatever you say.”

John pretended to be offended. “You judging me? You damn city slicker with your technology and your vans,” he put on a hard southern drawl. 

Smitty put his hand over his heart and feigned being offended. “These aren’t vans, they’re more expensive!” He said in a snooty New Yorker accent before cracking up, John joining him in the laughter session. 

_ ‘I just hope I can help him,’ _ John thought. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The teleporters teleport an Agent to a place closest to the Wishers house. In this case, John was teleported to Bryce's place cause he's a former Agent that just settled down on Earth
> 
> BROHM BROHM BROHM BROHM
> 
> There are different Satellites that will pass by Earth at different times (John's passed by when Smitty was 19 ( a year ago)). Some Wishes can be sent to other Satellites if the original doesn't have the means to fulfill it.  
> Also, there will be real shooting stars for the sake of future cliche, Agents would be able to tell the difference between a star/comet or whatever and a Satellite. 
> 
> Also, I don't really understand whatever the fuck most coffee joints have, like different lattes or frap/cappuccinos, so I just made it a vanilla latte, idk. Just make whatever drink you want for Smitty to have, it won't really matter
> 
> I just had to make the #askmini reference, and https://www.instagram.com/p/BJrwmCbgnmK/?taken-by=thesmii7y are Smit's clothes for this chapter (also I don't know if those are joggers, I don't know fashion, alright?)  
> (*I searched some pants and the pants in the picture look more like sweats so they're sweats now*)
> 
> Y'all are going to hate me for what I have planned. (Can someone help me plan out the details leading up to the plan? plz? Tumblr is airelenna (just message <3 ))


	4. "I'm fine"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smitty remembers a part of his past he repressed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to come up with an actual timeline for everything for what I have planned. Spent 5 minutes sucking ass at math. In the wise words of Kryoz, my math is suck
> 
> Someone help me write some other chapters please :'))

Smitty spent a few hours talking to John about anything that came up, video games, fashion, the world, anything, really. At first, Smitty wanted to come up with an excuse not to meet up with John, but Bryce was so persistent and optimistic about John that he didn’t want to ruin it, so he agreed. Turned out to be one of the best decisions Smitty has made since he genuinely enjoyed the others company. At first, he was suspicious about Bryce saying that John was one of his best friends but never seemed to talk about him, but all suspicions were blown away when Smitty opened his mouth and talked to another human outside of the internet. They had walked around a few stores, browsing various articles of clothing while also getting to know more and more about each other, as well as eating at some random burger joint. From what Smitty could tell, John was cocky and narcissistic, but not in the way that makes you want to punch them, but in the joking manner that made them seem really down to Earth and chill. Smitty liked that he didn’t have to bullshit anything.

 

* * *

 

They parted ways after lunch, John offering to pay because if he didn’t ‘Bryce would shun him.’ Smitty figured it would be better not to argue but threw down a ten dollar bill for a fraction of the bill - or for a tip -  when John wasn’t looking. Smitty didn’t realize he walked home grinning until his friend Nick - who was staying at his house for a few days - pointed it out. “Why you all giddy? Something happen? Or is it sugar?” He asked, playing Call of Duty on Smitty’s Xbox.

“None of your business,” Smitty said, childishly sticking out his tongue.

Nick gave Smitty a bitch face. “Right.”

Smitty walked into the kitchen and grabbed a small carton of milk out of one of the shelves and ran upstairs into his room. He had received a text from Bryce a few minutes ago and unlocked his phone. It was a Lenny face emoticon.

Smitty turned on his computer and sat down on the chair before texting a response.

**Smorty**

**What?**

**Brycey Bear**

**So how did it go?**

**John seemed really happy when he came home**

**Smorty**

**It was alright**

That wasn’t completely a lie but not the whole truth. Smitty genuinely enjoyed John’s company.

**Brycey Bear**

**Whatever you say**

 

Smitty left it at that.

 

Smitty received a game invite for Mario Kart from Ryan and he accepted after opening and taking a sip of his milk.

Smitty was invited to the discord chat, and instantly, people started yelling. Anthony was screaming about something that might’ve happened in a previous round.

“The Canadian’s here!” Scotty exclaimed.

“Y’all ready to eat ass?” Ryan asked, starting the tournament.

“Seriously, what’s with you and eating ass?” Smitty asked.

Ryan made an uncertain noise.

“New drinking game, take a shot every time Ryan talks about eating ass,” Anthony laughed.

“Sure, it might make you better at the game,” Ryan responded. Everyone laughed.

“Oh, fuck off,” Anthony sighed.

“Get ready to get wrecked, boys,” Smitty threatened.

  


After the game ended, David, Anthony, and Scotty were beyond pissed while Smitty and Ryan were laughing at their suffering because Ryan got second - with the help of Smitty - and Smitty got first. David kept saying that the only reason he lost was because his internet was bad. (It wasn’t.)

 

They parted ways after the tournament ended and Smitty left the call. He threw away the now empty milk carton and headed downstairs to get something to eat. He heard Nick screaming about something but paid no attention to it. The day has gotten rather uneventful after Smitty got home. Apart from Nick occasionally screaming, his house was rather quiet. Smitty doesn't mind the silence, in fact, he prefers it. It's one of the only times Smitty can think without any outside noises interrupting, for better or worse. It was getting darker outside, and soon, there would just be complete silence, where Smitty could be alone with himself, and his mind. Smitty opened the refrigerator and pulled out a plate of leftover pasta from yesterday and put it in the microwave to heat up for a couple of minutes.

 

When the microwave stopped and rang, Nick walked into the kitchen and grabbed some plates and forks, setting them down on the dinner table on the other side of the kitchen. Smitty had spaced out. “You’re dropping again,” Nick said. 

Smitty snapped back into reality, glanced at him and took out the pasta from the microwave. “What do you mean?” Smitty asked, bringing the pasta over to the table.

“Don’t think I don’t know the signs of depression,” Nick said. When he walked into the kitchen he noticed that Smitty seemed uninterested in everything, just blankly staring at things while mindlessly doing tasks.

 _‘Right. His girlfriend.’_ Smitty didn’t say anything.

“Don’t make me force you to go to therapy. I don’t want to see you through that shit again.”

“I’m fine.”

“No you’re not,” Nick persisted.

“You think you’re so great and innocent? Don’t think I don’t remember that hitman you hired to fuck up your girlfriend’s assaulter.”

Smitty regretted the words that came out of his mouth the second Nick’s expression fell and darkened. “I did what I had to do.”

“It wasn’t necessary.”

“It was in my eyes.”

“It was excessive.”

They stared each other down for a few seconds, Smitty’s mind screamed at him to stand down, to run and hide and forget the world.

“I’ll say it again, you need help,” Nicks tone was firm.

“I’m fine,” Smitty said once more, scooping some pasta onto his plate.

“Don’t fucking pull that shit with me!” Nick yelled.

“I’m fucking fine!” Smitty snapped. He stomped out of the dining room and up the stairs into his room, slamming the door shut. He set down his plate on his desk and sat down, taking long deep breaths. 

_I'm breaking at the seams, but I’ll handle it. I have for this long,’_ he thought. He aimlessly pushed around some of the pasta and stared at a worn out photo next to his monitor. It was a picture of him and three of his friends, Cody, Garrett, and Tim, frozen at one point in time. They were at a park one afternoon, screwing around with nerf guns and swords, all hyper and tired, grinning at the camera. Smitty would never forget the day he got a call from Cody’s mom, crying uncontrollably, saying they were all killed. Ten years later, and Smitty still remembered every word Cody’s mother said to him. His best friends at the time, all dead, because some asshole shot them all in the head. Smitty didn't feel hungry anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I spent twenty minutes making a shitty model of Smitty's house
> 
> Nick is sp00n, and my plan is coming to fruition >:3
> 
> When you fail at editing so there's repeating dialogue. Oops


	5. "I'll think of something"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> John digs deeper into Smitty's past while on a mall trip

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to make the city they live in a fictional city cause I don't know where I could make it that makes sense?? And it's going to be like early fall cause why not
> 
> I've made an imgur account with the map which is http://azazelwinchester.imgur.com/all/ I couldn't link the photo only because it didn't show the description of the place names. So basically all the place names in this story will be randomly generated. I don't know how imgur works so you might not be able to see the picture?
> 
> There's going to be some explanations about the chain of command here because I didn't know what else to do and it seemed appropriate (ish?) 
> 
> The name for the highest position seems cliche as fuck but I didn't know what else to call it. If I come up with something better I'll change it

John had returned to Bryce’s house after the meet up with Smitty. Bryce was in the kitchen digging around for something to eat. “Welcome back, I assume it went well?” He asked.

John nodded, “yeah.”

“Find anything out?” Bryce closed the refrigerator door.

“He briefly mentioned some friends but quickly dropped the subject, you know anything about that?” John asked.

Bryce shook his head. “He would never talk about any other details.”

John hummed. “I can’t get him to redact it if I don’t  know how to help him.”

“Try to get to know him better?” Bryce suggested.

“That’s probably the only thing I can do for now. You think Ryan can talk to Smitty about it?” John asked.

“He doesn’t talk to anyone about it.”

“I’ll think of something.”

  


John couldn’t sleep that night, so he was lying down in bed in one of Bryce’s guest rooms, staring a hole into the ceiling and thought about everything. He wondered if Tyler was out on a Wish, or if he had hooked up with Craig yet. He thought about the High Assignors and whether or not they were doing a job, so another Unconventional would never be given to a Trainee again like they had with John. A lot of Agents resented John because he had failed the Wish, but he didn’t care about what other Agent thought of him. He had failed, he acknowledges that he can’t fix it because it’s already happened.  
  


* * *

 

John woke up at around seven am when Smitty had called him. John hadn’t even realized he had fallen asleep until he had received the call. He sat up on the bed and picked up his phone that was charging on the nightstand and answered the call.

“Hey! Did I wake you up?” Smitty asked on the other line.

“No, I couldn’t sleep anyway,” John said, rubbing his eyes.

Smitty hummed. “You want to go somewhere today?”

“Like where?”

“I don’t know, a mall?”

“Sure,” John agreed, getting off the bed.

“Cool, I’ll be over at Bryce’s in a bit!” Smitty said before hanging up.

John yawned and picked up a pastel pink hoodie from off the office chair and a pair of black jeans and boots and quickly put them on before going to the bathroom and did all the morning/waking up essentials before running downstairs and saw Ryan laying down on the floor next to the wall. “You alright there bud?” John asked.

Ryan groaned loudly. “I don’t want to go to work.”

John mentally facepalmed and squatted on the ground next to Ryan and started awkwardly patting his head. “But you have to work, you have money to earn,” John said.

“But you don’t!” Ryan wailed. “You don’t have to deal with stupid people making stupid demands!”

“Because I’m using money that my Satellite provides,” John pointed out.

Ryan made a noise. “Lucky bitch,” he muttered and got up.

John laughed. “You’re a receptionist, how bad can it be?”

“Really bad. People are stupid.”

“I don’t doubt it.”

“Anyway, where you going?” Ryan asked, rubbing his neck.

“Shopping,” John simply said.

“With who?” Ryan pondered in a teasing tone.

“None of your fuckin business,” John pouted.

“Right.”

 

* * *

 

Smitty had arrived at Bryce’s house in a black and white flannel shirt with a white undershirt and black jeans a few minutes after Ryan finally left for work.

“Figure out where we’re going to go?” John asked, closing the door and locked the door with a key Bryce had given him before.

“Um, mall?” Smitty laughed.

“Which one?” John asked, following Smitty to his car.

“Any, I guess,” Smitty muttered.

“Real specific,” John chuckled.  

Smitty stuck out his tongue. “Well, you’re new to the grand city, let's just drive around for a bit, see what’s decent.”

“Yeah, that’s fine.”

 

The pair drove into the city in a comfortable silence. John just spent the majority of the drive staring out the window. It had been a while since he’s last been on Earth, the last time his Satellite, the Elysion passed by Earth was four years ago and almost all the terminals had been filled up with Wishes. If they were going to the mall that John was thinking of, one of his friends from the Satellite, an Informant - sounds exactly like what it is - would be there. John never really liked how the chain of command was set up, it just seemed janky and incomplete to him.

 

You start off as a Trainee in any field, like a cook or a technician. After you get enough training or experience, you can become a full fledged Agent. From there, you have the choice to become an Unconventional Agent (who can still do regular Wishes) an Informant, an Assignor, an Instructor or just stay a regular Agent. The Overseers and Grand Overseers then choose a High Assignor - who is essentially the head of the Satellite. From there, the Solas Council - very meta and cliche name to be honest - chooses the Overseers/Grand Overseers as a head of a solar system while the Solas Council oversees entire galaxies. As far as John knows, there’s only been five in existence. Who knows, maybe Evan would be in the Solas Council one day. He had overheard some of the other High Assignors talking about who might get the ‘Grand Promotion,’ but John didn’t care enough to continue listening. If Evan does manage to get in, then good for him. He had asked Craig why he had become an Assignor, but he just dodged the question. John didn’t ask again after that.

 

They had reached Guilding, the central city and the large underground mall since ‘places of importance’ are above ground. “Welcome to the largest mall in Dalrock,” Smitty said, parking his car. “It’s underground.”

John nodded. “What’s on top?”

“Museums, police station, government buildings, stuff like that,” Smitty explained.

The two exited the car and walked in. “I think one of my friends work here,” John muttered.

Smitty locked his car. “Really? What shop?”

“Proxy, it’s a technology store for repairs and upgrades and stuff like that,” John said.

“Nice, you want to go there first?”

“Sure, it’d be nice to see him again.”

 

They entered the mall and walked around for a bit, John struggled to find his way around since he has the navigational skills of a potato until Smitty figured out where to go with a convenient map. The store was in sight, with it’s bold, red, comic sans store name above the open door and they stepped in. A man stepped out from a storage closet and greeted them. “Hey! Welcome!”

“Hey! Jay! Remember me?” John asked.

Jay’s face lit up. “John! It’s been awhile, how have you been?” He asked, vaulting over the glass counter and gave John a hug.

“I’ve been good, how’s the Atlas?” John asked not-so subtly about Jay’s Satellite.

“It’s been slow, boring like usual,” Jay said. He gestured over to Smitty and raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, that’s Smitty, a friend of mine, Smitty, this is Jay,” John introduced. Smitty smiled and waved before slipping away somewhere to look at some computers.

“He your Wish?” Jay whispered when Smitty was out of earshot.

John nodded. “You think you can find some info on him?” John asked.

“I’ll see what I can do,” Jay said. “You need anything else, like tablets, phones?” Jay asked when Smitty returned from his quick loop around the store.

John shook his head. “No, that’s all, it’s been great seeing you again.”

Jay smiled and nodded.

 

“Anywhere else you want to go?” Smitty asked when they left the store.

“I don’t know where else to go,” John told him.

“Walking around it is.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Solas means light, brightness, enlightenment, and comfort so I guess that's fitting
> 
> I was flipping shit for like twenty minutes because I needed to actually put some characters in various Satellites, so I could properly connect everything together.
> 
> https://www.instagram.com/p/BC-8pZPgfD4/ There's Smitty's outfit


	6. "I think I can handle a little forest"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The bois go camping because the author is running low on middle-of-the-story ideas

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Someone should help me write this as I'm still pulling this out of my ass
> 
> Plz help :')

The car ride home was quiet after they've browsed some clothing stores. John's glad they have a similar sense of fashion so they have one more thing to talk about. John just dreaded the day that Smitty refuses to redact his Wish, but hopefully, he has enough time to convince him that life is worth living. 

 

They arrived at Bryce's house shortly after, and John invited Smitty in for a drink. Smitty accepted, following John into Bryce’s house. Although they’ve only known each other (as in face to face, not stalking,) for a few days, John felt as if they have a real friendship going on, perhaps a connection from a past life or an alternate universe. Bryce and Ryan wouldn’t be home until later, so they had a few hours to themselves and played a simple game of twenty questions to get to know the smaller details about one another. For example; Smitty is from Canada and uses milk bag imagery on social media, and is a ‘hardcore memer.’ He loves playing video games and pissing off his friends, and he’s also a programmer and (video) editor for some people online. 

 

John’s story, on the other hand, was almost completely made up. He said he was from West Bayside when in reality he was born on the star Omiah, and has lived on the Satellite Elysion since he was thirteen. He had chosen to be an Agent and had wanted to be one ever since he could think. He wanted the joy of helping other people, to make them happy. He never thought that he would become an Unconventional Agent. Oh well, he’ll just keep making up lies for now, until John can find the correct time to tell Smitty. 

 

They continued just talking about whatever came up to their minds, like favorite colors, games, food against some background noise of some random tv show about three dudebros hunting and talking shit to ghosts and screaming when they square up. The two didn’t realize that it was eight at night until Bryce came home yawning, but there was a smile on his face when he saw his two good friends socializing. Bryce said a quick hello before slipping into the kitchen to make dinner.

 

* * *

 

Smitty ended up staying for the next few days until the day of the camping trip in the forests between Norsea Lake, Emerald Shallows, and Hoyst Peak. John didn’t know about the ’beauty’ of the place, but apparently, it was stunning. Two large bodies of water northwest and a single large mountain southeast of the camp grounds. John never experienced the lakes himself, but apparently, the Emeralds Shallows were a hot spring with ‘Emerald green water’. 

 

Smitty, Bryce, Ryan and a few other people along with John all put their bags of tents, sleeping bags, clothes and other essentials into Ryan’s soccer mom van and headed off into the campgrounds. John didn’t know if they would have reception there - most likely not - but he brought his phone with him anyway. Who knows, maybe space tech would prevail and would grant him signal in the two days they’re alone in the forest, and also because he needed it in case Jay found some more information on Smitty that John didn’t already know, information like family, close friends and relatives, maybe even medical history, mental and physical health records, because according to Ryan, Smitty was in therapy once but quit because ‘it was a waste of time and money.’ 

 

The other three people had introduced themselves as David, Scotty, and Anthony. David was a tall and lanky Irishman who had claimed shotgun because of his height of six feet four. Tall, but still not as tall as the giant that is Tyler back on the Elysion. Scotty and Anthony were both huge dorks that were easily lovable and just super easy to talk to. Scotty is a secretary, while Anthony is an auto mechanic that apparently loves pandas. 

 

* * *

 

 

They talked and laughed all the way to the campgrounds and parked next to an opening between two large evergreens and everyone stepped out. Some started unpacking while others walked around to get the blood flowing. Bryce took the liberty of setting up the folding table and laid down all the coolers and loose food items on the table before going over to Anthony to help set up a tent. Ryan walked over to John, stretching. “If you want, you can explore a bit, I know you haven't been to this part of Dalrock,” Ryan said. He gave a sly grin that meant ‘because you never take the time to explore Earth.' 

John stuck out his tongue. “Fine, I’ll explore. I’ll be a normal human,” John said in a sassy tone. 

“You want to bring Smitty?” Ryan asked, cracking his neck. 

“I think I can handle a little forest.”

Ryan shrugged. “If you get lost, find a direction to walk in and walk. 

John raised an eyebrow. “That might not be the best advice.”

“Better than just hopelessly getting lost.”

John hummed. He didn't want to tell Ryan that he had the navigation skills of a potato and constantly gets lost. In the first month of John being on the Elysion, John constantly got lost, confusing the barracks for the equipment rooms or any other thing. Same happened when John was still on the Omiah for his first twelve years of life. His mother was always worried sick any time John disappeared from her sight. John yawned and told Scotty - he was the closest one to John - that he was going to explore. Scotty wished him luck and started setting up a tent. 

 

John didn’t pay attention to the many signs that they had passed on their way to the campgrounds. He probably should have, as paranoia started to set in and his mind started to wander to all the possible creepy crawlies that lived in the forest, various bugs, foxes, wolves, windigos, et cetera. Granted, the forest was pretty, with tall evergreens, oaks, and some other trees and plants John didn’t know the names to, so he ignored the creep factor and focused on the nice scenery. It was a pleasant change from the many cars and large buildings in the city. 

 

John stopped in a small clearing and spotted a small chipmunk on top of a rock before running off into a bush. He took a deep breath and looked around. “That tree looks familiar,” he muttered, looking at a half dead evergreen. He glanced to the other trees surrounding. “Then again, every tree looks familiar.” He groaned. “Fuck.” John was lost. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to skip straight to the camping because I got too lazy to think and write about anything else
> 
> John might be slightly directionally challenged in this story so naturally, I made him get lost in a forest. (See his playthrough of kholat for true "where am I?") 
> 
> I'm intending to make this universe an entire literal universe, like vast, multiple characters and places, like a fully fleshed out world, but in this story, I'll just focus on the main points of the story. Maybe I'll make a prequel or sequel to this story
> 
> Plz comment as it fuels the rusty and broken down motivation and idea train <3


	7. "It's draining. Exhausting."

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smitty opens up

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ***I've made a side blog on Tumblr for this story, it's s-i-t-n-s (with the hyphens.) I'll be posting updates on progress there, answer some questions, explain things more in-depth, and occasionally post a teaser ;))
> 
> Should I make a prequel/sequel to this? Or another version of the story but focusing on other characters like Craig or the 'building up to everything it is now'

John mentally screamed and sighed. He pulled out his phone from his back pocket and unlocked it. Rejoice! One single bar of signal! John contained his excitement and called Craig. He could probably help John out more than the others, as John has absolutely no idea where he is, just somewhere in a forest.

“Hello?” Craig answered the phone and yawned. 

“Hey, buddy, can you help me out?”

“With what?” Craig muttered. There was rustling on the other line. 

“I’m going camping and I may be sort of lost?” 

Craig sighed and chuckled. “Of course you are. Hang on, let me track you.” 

John hummed and let Craig do his thing. “Alright, found you. Where do you want to go?” 

“The foothills,” John said. 

Craig was silent. “Can’t you just look for a large  _ mountain _ ?” 

John rolled his eyes. “Kind of hard to when you can’t see the mountain because the trees are too fucking tall.” 

Craig grunted. “Turn.”

John turned clockwise until Craig told him to stop when he turned about sixty degrees. “Just walk.”

John shrugged and walked forward back into the forest. 

“Anyway, how’s the Wish going?” Craig asked. His tone changed. It’s more somber than before.

John thought for a moment for the right word to describe the progress. “Decent?”

Craig hummed. “Just… Don’t get too attached, alright?” 

“I know how to fulfill my Wishes.”

“I know, it’s just that you’re taking more time with this Wish than your previous ones, I’m just worried.”

“I appreciate you caring, but I’ll be fine,” John said and hung up the call. John really appreciated Craig caring so much, but it was slightly annoying. Craig had always blamed himself for being the one to make John an Unconventional Agent, but John didn’t blame him. If only Craig stopped blaming himself.

 

* * *

  
  


John finally made his way back to the campground, only mildly panicked. “Welcome back!” Anthony was the first one that spotted him. 

“Yep! Totally didn’t get lost.” John said, speed walking to the table that had a large hunk of ham on it. 

Bryce carved out a slice and placed it on a slice of bread, piled on some eggs and handed the sandwich to John. “How was it?” 

“Slightly worrying, but still pretty.”

“Needed some outside help to get back?” Bryce chuckled. 

John nodded, taking a bite of the sandwich. “Craig helped, but he seemed really tired.” 

“Craig really needs to get laid, he’s too stressed. You think he’s with Tyler yet?”

“Well Assignors need to look after three to ten Agents,” John muttered. He stopped to think. “Probably not, Craig’s too shy and Tyler’s too much of a dudebro to make the first move.”

Bryce snickered. “Yeah.”

There was a moment of silence and John spoke up. “You ever miss it? Being an Agent?”

Bryce glanced over at John and stopped organizing things on the table. “Sometimes. It was fun, but I’m happy here, with Ryan and everyone else. You should take some time to relax.”

“Aren’t we technically relaxing right now?” 

Bryce shrugged. “Depends on what you do.” He gestured over to Smitty, lying down on some grass, covered by the shade of some large oaks. 

John took the hint and walked over to Smitty after quickly chomping down on his sandwich. 

“This spot taken?” John asked. 

Smitty opened his eyes. “Yeah, it’s taken by Casper, the Friendly Fuckboy,” Smitty joked.

“Would Casper mind if I sat on him?” John laughed.

“He’s a fuckboy, so probably not. Lie down.”

John did as Smitty said and stared up into the leaves, with rays of sunlight peeking through.  _ ‘Now’s the time _ .’ “Have you ever heard of the concept of Wishes?” John asked, turning over to look at Smitty.

“What do you mean?”

John looked back up and sighed, his heart pounded in his chest. “Like Wishing on shooting stars, and those Wishes actually come true, someone comes down from space to grant those Wishes,” John paraphrased. 

Smitty thought for a bit. “Yeah, actually. My mom told me about that when I was about fifteen. Didn’t believe her though. Do you?” Smitty asked. 

John thought through his answer carefully. “Yeah.”

“What did you Wish for?”

“I Wished for a house, for me and my family,” John lied. On the Omiah, every family built their own house and it would be passed down from generation to generation unless someone in the family decided to build another, then so on and so forth.

“Did you get a house?” Smitty asked.

John hummed. “Yeah. Someone came down from space and got us a house.”

Smitty seemed surprised. “What did he look like?”

“A normal human, nice, tall, buff, and British.” John had basically described Craig, but it’s not like Smitty would know.

“Really?” Smitty asked. He didn’t sound skeptical, just surprised.

John hummed and closed his eyes. 

“I actually did Wish for something. Never came true though,” Smitty said quietly. 

John already knew what it was but asked anyway. “What was it?”

“Happiness. Freedom.” 

That was a lie, but in a way, it wasn’t. Death could be peaceful and free from the burden of life. 

“I hope you get your wish,” John forced out. 

  
  


Silence fell over the two as it was getting darker. Smitty shifted on the patch of grass and stretched, popping his back before turning to his side to look at John. “You ever been depressed?” Smitty asked.

John turned to Smitty, shaking his head. 

Smitty took a deep breath. “I have been. It's the worse feeling ever, like you're stuck underwater and you can't breathe, looking at everyone that's happy and filled with purpose, and you're just  _ there _ . It's worse when your mind starts wandering, then you sink deeper and deeper. Some don't come back up to the surface.”

John didn't say anything and listened to Smitty. 

“It’s draining. Exhausting. The second you start thinking is the second you start sinking deeper, while your thoughts plague your mind, but you want to think. But when you do, you feel, but you don’t want to feel so you think and it just continues until you want to stop thinking and feeling altogether.” Smitty stopped and took a breath. “By some ass chance miracle, you can be saved, but sometimes you can’t. Some have gone too deep and can’t breathe, they can’t see, so they just let go. Your mind is supposed to be your friend, but what do you do when your mind betrays you?” Smitty looked over to John. “You understand?”

John was speechless, but he nodded. If this is what Smitty’s going through, then John would make damn sure that he would save Smitty, even if it meant drowning himself to bring Smitty up.

 

* * *

  
  


Night fell. John and Smitty got up off the grass and headed back to the main group, where the guys had already set everything up. Scotty took a place in the center of the circle of tents and started a small fire. John sat down next to Scotty and threw a small twig into the fire. “How you doing?” He asked. 

Scotty shrugged. “Fine.”

“Fine?”

“Fine as in I’m perfectly content with existence, but I wouldn’t mind if the sun exploded right now,” Scotty said. 

John chuckled. “Same.” 

All the sudden a bag of marshmallows came out of a tent and smacked Scotty in the face. David burst out the tent in a large hoodie and blue sweats. “It’s s’more time, fuckers!”

John glanced over at Scotty who rolled his eyes. 

“He’s always like this,” Scotty whispered, opening the bag. Ryan jogged over with some barbeque forks and handed one to everyone along with some chocolate and graham crackers. He put the extras into a pot on the ground. 

“Prepare for spooks,” Anthony came up behind Ryan and patted him on the head. 

Ryan sat down and grunted. “Your stories are shit.”  

Anthony feigned offense. “You’re shit!”

Ryan just stared at Anthony. “Kay.”

Everyone laughed.

 

* * *

 

John sat through three horrible horror stories before he couldn’t handle the cringe and excused himself. He’s full of burgers and s’mores and decided to call it a night. John crawled into the tent that he shared with Smitty (because he didn’t have one and Bryce and Ryan were sharing one.) Crickets and other insects were chirping, drowning out the sound of the guys. John lied down on the sleeping bag and closed his eyes, listening to the faint sounds of the crackling fire, leaves rustling against the wind. In a few minutes, John fell asleep. 

 

After John had excused himself from the group and slipped into their tent, Smitty looked up at the sky, drowning out all the surrounding sounds. The stars were clearly visible and it was beautiful. There was another shooting star. This time, Smitty really did Wish for happiness and freedom. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Craig (who also has a phone (should've clarified earlier)) tracked John using the space phone GPS and can see the whole general area surrounding the phone and it's like an arrow on the map (like google maps I guess
> 
> The blurb about depression was essentially what I felt from my experience, and it sucked ass
> 
> I'll probably make Dalrock an island in the Mediterranean or Hawaii or something


	8. "Just a feeling"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They go swimming

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm actually posting updates on my side blog on Tumblr, s-i-t-n-s so if you want to know my progress, just check there, I'll be posting other things as well.

John was woken up by the sounds of screaming outside the tent. He got up and yawned. Smitty shot up, looking around alarmed. “Morning,” John muttered. 

Smitty grunted, rubbing his eyes. “What the fuck are they yelling about out there?”

John made a noise. “Go check it out?”

“You’re coming with,” Smitty ordered. 

John stuck out his tongue but didn’t complain. He followed Smitty out the tent and to the campground, where David and Anthony were banging pots and pans together. John picked up a small rock and threw it at Anthony’s back. Anthony stopped his banging and threw a small pan towards John but it bounced off the ground halfway there, stopping four feet away from John and Smitty.

“What are you guys doing?!” Smitty asked.

David whipped around dramatically and clanged his pots together. “Waking everyone up! We’re going swimming!”

“It’s barely eight!” John yelled back.

Anthony let out a loud laugh. “It’s twelve.”

“Really?” Smitty asked John. John scrabbled back into the tent and unlocked his phone. Sure enough, it was twelve thirteen. Smitty peeked into the tent and John nodded. 

“Well I guess we’re going swimming,” Smitty muttered, rubbing his eyes.

“No food?” 

“Bryce will probably set up a picnic or something. He’d better or we’ll all go insane.”

  
  


A few minutes later, everyone fully woke up and changed into swimwear - or anything resembling swimwear - in or behind tents. It was rather chilly so they had loose shirts and sweats over their swimwear and made their way to the lake. Bryce and David were carrying coolers full of food. John made sure to stick close to everyone and not wander off too far, as he didn’t want to get lost again. 

 

He followed everyone northwest and soon came to a large body of water. Bryce and David set up the food area on a table by some grass covered by the shade of trees while everyone else got onto the dock. Anthony let out a war cry and shoulder checked Scotty into the lake before flinging off his shirt and pants, cannonballing into the lake. 

Scotty resurfaced a few seconds later. “You bitch!” He yelled, dunking Anthony when he breached the surface. He let go after a couple seconds and Anthony splashed Scotty. 

“Y’all stupid,” Smitty said taking off his shirt and pants, calmly jumping into the lake. 

David took out a nerf football from one of the coolers and threw at Scotty. It hit the dock and landed in the water, bobbing up and down behind Anthony. 

Anthony picked up the football and threw it at Smitty’s face. 

Smitty flipped him off and dived underwater. John didn’t know what happened after but Anthony screamed and flailed in the water. 

Smitty soon resurfaced and laughed. In another area on the shore, Bryce and Ryan were splashing around, chasing each other on the shallow beach. David walked down onto the dock and sat down, kicking the water. 

Anthony responded with a loud pterodactyl screech and sent a wave of water at Smitty’s face. 

“You going to go in?” Bryce came up to John.

“Soon,” John replied. 

“You know how to swim?” 

“Why wouldn’t I?” 

“Because you’ve been in space your whole life and I don’t think you’ve been near a large body of water since the Omiah and you’ve never even gotten into the water,” Bryce said smugly. 

John blew a raspberry. “I’ve been in water!”

“A bathtub doesn’t count. It’s just water, it’ll just be like zero gravity, just with more effort.”

“And if I drown?” 

“You won't, Smitty will save you,” Bryce grinned.

John raised an eyebrow. “What makes you so sure?”

“He’s never been talkative about or even to people he’s just met. If anyone can save him, it’s you.” 

John took a deep breath. “I’m trying, I really am. I just hope I’m not the cause.” 

Bryce cocked his head to the side. “Why do you think that?”

John shrugged. “Just a feeling I guess.” 

“You’ve done nothing wrong, don’t worry. Now get into the damn lake.”

John groaned but complied. He took off his shirt and sweats and tossed them to Bryce. A little hint of fear started blooming in John’s chest when he got closer to the edge of the dock. 

“John! Come on, get in!” Smitty exclaimed. He splashed some water onto John’s legs. The water was pretty warm. John groaned and cursed to himself, jumping up and down a bit before jumping into the water. He sank with a less than graceful flailing and managed to get to the surface before panic really set in. John coughed and held onto the dock post until he could get a better grip on staying afloat. Smitty paddled over. “You lived.”

“So far.” John let go and sank a few inches before vigorously kicking to stay afloat. 

Smitty laughed. “Don’t tense up, try to spread yourself out and kick in an eggbeater fashion.” 

John mimicked what Smitty was doing and managed to stay floating easier. “Fuck water.”

“Poor you. You can get closer to shore if you want,” Smitty said.

John rolled his eyes. “I ain’t a pussy!” 

“Well don’t blame me if you drown,” Smitty stuck out his tongue and splashed John a bit. John sputtered and slapped the water in front of Smitty before quickly climbing back up onto the dock and ran around to the shore where Anthony had Scott on his shoulders. Scotty waved to John and called him over. “Let’s play chicken!” 

John jogged slowly over to the shallower area where the two were and Smitty swam over. “John and I are going to kick your asses,” Smitty declared. 

John crossed his arms and nodded. “Get on me, Smitty.” John knelt down onto the sandy floor. 

Smitty snorted but complied, getting onto John’s shoulders. He pat John’s head when he was ‘settled and secure.’ John got up and walked backward a few steps. “Get ready, bitches.” 

“You’re gonna lose,” Anthony threatened. 

Smitty guffawed and counted down from three. On one, the two teams charged forward as best as they could in water. They reached the center of the battleground and Smitty shoved Scotty as hard as he could, almost pushing Scotty off Anthony’s shoulders but Scotty held on, pushing back. John dug into the loose, wet sand as best as he could. He kept a hand on Smitty’s leg and pushed Anthony with the other. 

They were at a stalemate until Smitty let out a loud yell and pushed Scotty’s shoulders, making him fall back into the water. He resurfaced with a small cough and wiped off his face, flipping off Smitty before walking over to the other three on land. 

“We won!” John boasted. “What do we win?” He looked up at Smitty who shrugged. 

“Better be something worth while.” 

“Well right now, I want food,” Anthony sulked. John shuffled over, patting Anthony on the shoulder. 

“You put up a great fight,” he said, bowing his head. 

Anthony made a noise and gestured the two to follow him to the shore and back to the food area. Ryan ran back to the table with Bryce hot on his tail and vaulted over the table. “Y’all want food now?” Ryan asked. He opened one of the coolers and dumped out a bunch of sandwiches and granola bars. Everyone that was there grabbed their favored thing and chomped down.

 

* * *

 

It was around four when everyone decided it was time to go back to camp, David strongly suggesting it would be a great idea to race back and then disappeared into the trees. John just followed Smitty back to the camp where Ryan asked everyone if they wanted to drive home or stay for another day. No one really gave a straight response and just looking around to the others for opinions and silently muttered to themselves. They decided to leave after another day. They packed all the food and left all the essentials to survive the rest of the night, or ‘challenge mode’ as Scotty said. Meanwhile, Ryan thought it would be a great idea to throw small pebbles and twigs at Anthony. It was a while before Anthony snapped, throwing a half empty water bottle at Ryan. Smitty was back at the grassy area where he was lying down yesterday. John passed Bryce - who was scolding Anthony and Ryan - and walked over to Smitty, lying on his spot yesterday. “You alright?” 

Smitty nodded. “It’s just relaxing here. Quieter, away from the chaos.” 

John inhaled the air. “It is.” 

Smitty hummed. Today was a good day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Finally managed to update! I don't know if this chapter's any good, but at least I updated


	9. "You don't know him"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Smitty and Nick fight again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yey I uploaded
> 
> I really want to add other characters into the story as actual characters, not just mentioning them. Maybe if I can't figure it out then I'll make another story in this universe where they're more important, I guess.

The night passed with hardly any other problems, only mild complaining from David who decided to sleep in the car with all the windows open that night. They packed up all the remaining stuff and made sure nothing was left behind as they left the campground and made their way back into the suburbs. David, Scotty, and Anthony were all dropped off first. Next up was Smitty whose place was in Dambrook. Bryce pulled up to Smitty’s house and John jumped out the car to help move his stuff back into the house. Smitty unlocked the door and let John in, carrying the disassembled tent and sleeping bag. John followed Smitty down stairs. He saw someone in the kitchen that was giving him the stink eye, but John ignored it.

“Well, camp was fun,” John said, trying to make small talk.

Smitty nodded and smiled. “We should do that again sometime.”

“I’d like that.” The basement was pretty drab and dull, not like the living area, it was just gray walls, black couch, a single painting on a wall next to a small flat screen. A layer of dust covered everything and John saw two bedrooms that looked immaculate. There was no dust, the closet doors were closed and the bed was made. No wrinkles, no nothing. He thought that asking questions would lead nowhere. He saw Smitty struggling to put the stuff back on the high shelf and rushed over to help. “Such a gentleman,” Smitty said sarcastically.

“Excuse you, but I'm the epitome of gentleman!” John retorted.

Smitty scoffed, smirking. “Save me from the clutches of death, my noble gentleman!” Smitty declared, jumping on John's back.

John let out a less than manly cry and ran up the stairs, turning off all the lights as he did. Smitty was laughing and held on as John ran out the front door, stopping in front of Ryan’s car. Smitty got off John and smiled, wrapping John into a hug. He opened his eyes and could see Bryce and Ryan freaking out in the car. Smitty just flipped them off and focused on the hug. All worries just seemed to melt away. Smitty pulled away from the hug and John ruffled his hair. “See you later, memelord,” John grinned.

“Indeed, bonkripper,” Smitty lightly punched John’s stomach.

“Where the fuck did you get that nickname?” John laughed.

Smitty shrugged. “Get off my property now.”

John scoffed. “Rude. I thought you loved me.”

“I’m not going to love you if you don’t leave, the lovebirds are getting impatient.”

Groaning and frowning, John sighed. “Fine.”

“If you want we can go see a movie tomorrow or something,” Smitty suggested.

“Sure, what movie?” John regretted asking when Smitty grinned evilly.

“The Emoji Movie, duh,” Smitty said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

John cringed and Smitty laughed. “Yeah, sure. I’ll suffer through the monstrosity with you.”

Smitty grinned and hugged John again. “We’ll probably regret this, won’t we?”

John nodded. “Probably.”

Ryan beeped the horn on his car and the two jumped apart.

“Well, I better get going.”

Smitty nodded and watched as John got back into the car and as Ryan drove off, back to Walgate. Smitty turned around and went into his house when the car turned out into the main street. Nick was sitting on the couch, glaring at Smitty with a disapproving glare like a father waiting for their child to get home after their curfew. “What?” Smitty asked. His tone was a bit harsher than he had intended.

“I wouldn’t trust him if I were you,” Nick said.  

Smitty raised an eyebrow. “Why not?”

“He’s not who you think he is.”

“And what makes you so sure?” Here we go again, another fight with Nick.

“There’s a side to him that you don’t know, he’s not what you think he is.”

Smitty rolled his eyes. “You don’t fucking know him.”

“He’s dangerous!” Nick snapped.

“You don’t know him!” Smitty yelled. He was tired of Nick acting like he was a child and that he couldn’t handle himself. He didn’t have enough energy to tell Nick to get out of his house so he just left. He got into his car and just drove.

 

* * *

 

 

Smitty drove for ten minutes and reached Bryce’s’ house. He didn’t know why he drove there but didn’t really care. He got out of the car and locked it before knocking on the oak door. Five seconds passed and John opened the door. He seemed surprised but happy to see Smitty nonetheless.

“Hey, something up?” John asked. He stepped aside and let Smitty into the house.

“Got into another argument with my friend… roommate.” Smitty muttered. Smitty sat down on the couch and John sat next to him.

“What was it about?” John asked.

“He said some shit about you not being trustworthy and was just pissing me off,” Smitty muttered.

“Well, you want to stay over for a few days? I’m sure Bryce and Ryan won’t mind,” John suggested.

“Are you sure?” Smitty was hesitant. He didn’t want to intrude.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?”

“Because there aren’t any more spare rooms?” Smitty took a shot in the dark.

John raised an eyebrow. “There are two more spare rooms upstairs and one downstairs though.”

Smitty clicked his tongue. He couldn’t help but let some of the doubt about John slip into his thoughts. Was Nick right? But why would he be?

“You want to room with me?” John asked.

“Would you trust me?” Smitty fired back.

“We shared a tent together in the woods, why wouldn’t I?”

Smitty gave him a small smile. “Thanks.”

 

* * *

 

Smitty decided to be a good temporary housemate and go out to help Bryce out with some groceries. They were lacking in almost everything but cereal. Five whole unopened boxes. Not the tiny wimpy boxes, those huge ones at Costco. He got some apples, assorted vegetables, milk, eggs, et cetera. Even some spare clothes for himself. By the time he got through checkout and back to Bryce’s house, it was getting dark. He spotted John sitting on the roof outside his room’s window and waved at him. John waved back and crawled back inside.

John came out the front door and helped Smitty bring in some of the groceries that he got on his little shopping trip. It was dark, didn’t help that he took the scenic route back, but he appreciated John’s help. John grabbed a couple boxes of healthy shit and stacked them on top of each other before staggering back into the house, plopping them down onto the counter. “You can take a shower. Put those in my closet or something,” John said, pointing to Smitty’s box of three different pairs of clothing.

Smitty nodded. “Thanks, man. For everything.”

John smiled and organized the things Smitty bought as Smitty ran upstairs to John’s room. He took off all the stickers and tags from the clothes and picked out a plain black t-shirt and gray sweats. He had dug through some of the closets in the hallway and found a sky blue towel. He grabbed it and Smitty got into John’s bathroom and started the progress of a shower after figuring out how to turn on the damn thing.

 

John finished putting everything in somewhat orderly fashion and ran upstairs. He picked up Smitty’s clothes from the bed, folded them and put them in an empty section of the closet that was still barren. The shower was still running and it was fully dark out. John climbed out his window, sitting where he was before. It was quiet. Peaceful. You could see the stars.

 

* * *

 

John crawled back into his room when he heard Smitty leave the bathroom. “Make yourself at home,” John said. Smitty nodded and sat down on the bed as John grabbed his ‘sleep clothes’ and started showering himself. Smitty scooted over to the wall and flopped down on the bed, head hitting the pillow with a loud thump. That was strange. He did the same thing but slightly more right. The thump wasn’t there. Smitty lifted up the pillow and lying there, was a gun. A standard, black, police issue Glock. All of the sudden Nick’s berating of John seemed sort of plausible. The safety was still on and he managed to eject the clip. The entire clip was filled with shiny new bullets.

 

The shower shut off and John came out a few moments later, hair dripping wet with a towel draped over his shoulders and a pair of black boxers. John stopped in his tracks when he saw Smitty sitting on the bed, with his gun in hand. The gun from his Satellite that he moved under his pillow after staying at Bryce’s for three days.

“Why do you have this?” Smitty asked.

John couldn’t think.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a bit longer than my previous chapters because I really wanted it to end the way I ended it. 
> 
> I'm still on the fence about two different endings and just akljbfkaeubgvbkjsbv
> 
> I'll be posting updates and shiz on my Tumblr sideblog for this story : s-i-t-n-s  
> Hit it up if you want to know my progress


	10. "I'm not from here"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Explanations that are long overdue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't know how to end this and it's really short but I wanted to update

John didn’t know what to do. Maybe he could get away with another lie, but maybe the large hole he’s dug for himself will just get deeper. “Do you want the truth?” John asked. 

Smitty looked at John like he was kidding. “What else would I want?” Honestly, part of Smitty didn’t even want to know. Maybe John was a drug dealer or something. Maybe he was a hitman? An undercover cop? Maybe something else entirely. 

John gestured for Smitty to follow him and climbed out the window again. Smitty reluctantly followed. He put the clip back into the pistol and placed it on John’s desk before sitting down next to John. “What’s this about?” Smitty asked. 

John took a deep breath and leaned his head back, looking at the sky. He had messaged Craig a couple days ago and he said that the Elysion would be passing by Earth again. “I’m not from here,” John started. 

“Yeah, no shit,” Smitty muttered. 

“As in I’m not from Earth. And, I don’t want you to die,” he whispered. John let Smitty connect the dots.

Smitty just cursed under his breath. “So you knew the whole time?” 

John nodded. “I didn’t want to hurt you, I still don’t. I really like you, and I realize lying wasn’t the best way to deal with things,” John said. “I’m sorry.”

Smitty thought for a moment. He didn’t expect his Wish might’ve actually been able to come true, but it didn’t. Because John didn’t want it to happen. “Where are you from?” Smitty asked. He wasn’t expecting a straight answer when John looked at something on his phone. 

John looked back up at the sky and pointed at one place in the sky. There was nothing there, only a few stars. Smitty was about to say something when a light streak passed through where John was pointing at before disappearing and reappeared at another point in the sky. John looked over to Smitty and smiled sadly. “That’s where I live, the Satellite Elysion. Bryce lived there for some time too. Somewhere in that general area,” John pointed to his right. “Is the Omiah, where I was born.” 

Smitty didn’t know what to say so he just nodded, stunned.

John took a deep breath. “I’m sorry I lied, I just didn’t know how to explain that I was from space and I came here to grant your wish,” John muttered. 

“I understand.” Smitty scooted closer to John and snaked his arm around John, leaning on his head on John’s shoulder. “I really like you too,” Smitty smiled. He was glad John didn’t follow through with Smitty’s Wish. Maybe life could get better for Smitty. Maybe them both. 

 

* * *

 

John spent a couple more minutes answering all the questions he could without giving away too much about his previous Wishes. He told Smitty everything he could, every little detail about the Elysion, the Omiah, and Smitty listened intently to every word. 

 

After that, they prepared a simple spaghetti dinner together as Bryce and Ryan came home. Dinner was nice and calming, and Smitty’s never been happier. Bryce didn’t really mind that John had told Smitty about everything, it was a long time coming. And honestly, Smitty has never felt closer to John than that moment on the roof. He finally felt like he truly knew John. It made Smitty happy. So far, life’s good. Ever since he met John, he’s happier. More alive. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 500 words off my normal 1000 word quota, but whatever :') Really wanted to make the chapter longer but I didn't really know how so I'll probably slap in a time skip in the next chapter
> 
> Occasional updates will be posted (maybe even a teaser and some answers) on my Tumblr side blog for this story, s-i-t-n-s


End file.
